Thackray Medical Museum

With nine interactive galleries to explore, Thackray Medical Museum offers a fun day out for all the family. Be transported back to the dirt and grime of Victorian Leeds. Take a walk down the streets of 1842 and be surrounded by the smells and sounds of Victorian life. What was life really like amongst the rats and bedbugs? Enter an operating theatre in 1842 and experience first-hand the horror of Victorian surgery. Find out how scientific breakthroughs and advances in surgical techniques have changed our lives, discover how vaccines and antibiotics revolutionised medicine and explore your body in our interactive Life Zone Gallery. Family activities take place every school holiday and every Saturday during term time.

Venue Type:

Museum

Opening hours

Open daily 10.00am until 5.00pm. Last entry 4.00pm.Open until 8.30pm every third Thursday of the month

Additional info

Access for visitors with disabilities: The museum has a car park with spaces reserved for orange badge holders.The car park is next to the museum entrance. There is a dropped kerb and the approach to the museum is level.The bus stop is situated approximately 100 yards from the museum.

The museum exhibitions are spread over 2,500m² on two floors. There is a lift to all floors, and seating throughout the galleries. All areas of the museum and almost all exhibits are accessible to wheelchair users. Space for wheelchair users can be reserved in the conference centre auditorium.

Induction loops are fitted throughout the galleries and in the conference centre auditorium. Written text versions of all sounds within the displays are available.

Many areas of the museum contain objects, displays and interactives which can be touched and there are many exhibits which include sound.

A wheelchair is available on request. Please telephone to book.

Fully accessible toilets are located on the ground floor next to the lift, and on the first floor in the entrance to the conference centre. There are steps down to the baby change area.

The museum collection has over 35,000 objects which, in particular, include a vast range of surgical instruments dating from the late 19th century to the present day. The collection also includes a unique collection of English pharmacy ceramics. The library has over 8,000 books, including the largest collection of medical trade literature in the world. This award-winning interactive museum looks at how improved living conditions and medical advances help us to live around 50 years longer than we did in 1840. Spend a fascinating three hours exploring the slums of Victorian Leeds as one of the town's ‘characters’ and discover some of the weird treatments available. In ‘Pain, Pus and Blood’ experience surgery without anaesthetics and in ‘Having a Baby’ see how childbirth has become safer. Finally in Life Zone!, enter the giant gut and explore the human body.

Collection details

Medicine, Science and Technology, Social History

Key artists and exhibits

Charles F Thackray

public health, childbirth, medicine and healthcare

surgical instruments

pharmacy ceramics

medical trade literature

Victorian Britain

Medicine

Medicine Through Time

Anaesthetics

Bodyworks

Exhibition details are listed below, you may need to scroll down to see them all.

Exhibition (temporary)

Recovery? From Flanders to Afghanistan

17 July 2014 — 31 December 2018 *on now

A thought-provoking look at the medical advances that emerged from the First World War, drawing in parallels from modern day conflicts. Created in collaboration with servicemen and women who have experience of medicine in war, the exhibition looks at shell shock/PTSD, limb loss and hearing loss and how they are treated then and now.

Suitable for

Admission

Events details are listed below. You may need to scroll down or click on headers to see them all. For events that don't have a specific date see the 'Resources' tab above.

Play

Summer Fun

20 July — 28 August 2015 *on now

Notorious King Henry has injured his leg in a jousting accident and the wound refuses to heal. Using herbs and traditional remedies, our Tudor Wise Woman will attempt to create a cure that will get King Henry back on his feet.

Suitable for

0-4

7-10

5-6

11-13

Website

Quarantine: Zombie Fright Night

31 October — 1 November 2015

The museum has been quarantined after an incurable virus was discovered inside. On Halloween those who dare are invited to enter the Quarantine zone and explore the museum after dark and after hours. Guests are advised to stay alert though, as the infected lurk behind every corner.

Those who make it through alive can celebrate in undead style at the zombie disco, strike a gruesome pose in the infected photo booth, take a chance with a fearsome lucky dip, and more!

So step into the Quarantine Zone this Halloween and see if you have what it takes to make it through the infected galleries of Thackray Medical Museum. Will you make it out alive or will you become a member of the undead?

A bar serving food and drinks will be open during the event. Please note only food and drink purchased on site may be consumed at this event.18+ only – ID may be required

Photographs, engravings and lurid descriptions of horrific living conditions are included in this pack. The materials are structured so that each unit deals with a specific aspect of public health, ranging from polluted water and filthy privies through to food adulteration and overcrowding. Children are given enough information to form a clear impression of why it was dangerous to live in Victorian times. N.C Study unit 3a: Victorian Britain D.

Creator

Thackray Musuem

How to obtain

The pack can be purchased for £9.95 (plus p&p) in the museum shop, by post or by calling the education department on 0113 205 6521.

Paper-based and downloads

Accidents, Beatings and Bladders: Life in the mills and factories Resource Pack

Contains photographs and engravings of the inside and outside of mills and factories, as well as contemporary descriptions of life in such establishments. Mr. Drinkwater’s report contains details of the beatings and accidents and makes compulsive reading. Extracts have been edited so thatchildren of mixed ability can access the material. After class discussion based on these sources it is possible for children to accurately reconstruct a day in the life of a factory child.

Creator

Thackray Museum

How to obtain

The pack can be purchased for £9.95 (plus p&p) in the museum shop, by post or by calling the education department on 0113 205 6521.

Paper-based and downloads

Britain Since 1930: Life and health before and after the introduction of the NHS

Provides a lively introduction to issues relating to medicine, public health and living conditions in the 1930’s and the tremendous impact of the NHS on daily life. Specifically designed for use by teachers with little knowledge of the issues surrounding the introduction of the NHS.

Creator

Thackray Museum

How to obtain

The pack can be purchased for £9.95 (plus p&p) in the museum shop, by post or by calling the education department on 0113 205 6521.

Boxes, objects and other kit

Florence Nightingale Led Session

This is a fully interactive taught sessions for key stage one which includes investigation, role play and the use of time lines. It lasts for approximately 90 minutes.Meet Florence Nightingale and find out how she became a nurse then follow her journey to the Scutari Hospital and help her to improve the conditions in the hospital. Help Florence decide how she should travel and what to take on her journey. Will you be able to make things better for the wounded soldiers in Scutari?

Creator

Thackray Museum

How to obtain

The workshop costs just £4.00 per pupil which includes a visit to the museum. The museum’s education programme is very popular and so once you have decided you would like to visit us it is essential that you call as soon as possible to make a provisional booking. Once a date has been agreed you will be sent a booking form, which should be completed and returned to the museum’s education department as soon as possible to confirm the booking. A deposit is not required but we ask that payment should be made on the day of your visit by cash or cheque.Telephone the education department on 0113 205 6521 to make your booking.

Paper-based and downloads

Florence Nightingale, Mary Seacole and the Crimean War Resource Pack

Contains copies of superb contemporary engravings. By looking carefully at the pictures children can rapidly build up an idea of what it was like to be a solider in the Crimean War. This pack deals with everything from the life in the camps to the troops in action and is supplemented with source material on Florence Nightingale and Mary Seacole.N.C Study unit 3a: Victorian Britain C.

Creator

Thackray Museum

How to obtain

The pack can be purchased for £9.95 (plus p&p) in the museum shop, by post or by calling the education department on 0113 205 6521.

Paper-based and downloads

Florence Nightingale Resource Pack

Activities include packing Florence’s suitcase for the journey to the Crimea, writing a letter persuading your parents to let you go with her and devising a healthy diet for the patients at Scutari. Other activities cover learning strategies including sequencing, timelines and persuasive writing. The pack contains teacher’s notes, suggested activities and images. Links directly to Unit 4 : Who was Florence Nightingale and why do we remember her?Resource produced as part of Museums and Galleries Education Programme Phase 2.

Creator

Thackray Museum

How to obtain

The pack can be purchased for £9.95 in the museum shop, by post or by calling the education department on 0113 205 6521.

Digital and online resources

Games

GCSE History Resource Pack

Essential for planning your visit to the museum. Contains details on how to structure a visit, suggestions for activities and numerous worksheets, plus teacher’s answer sheets. A must for all secondary school teachers planning a visit. Relates directly to Medicine Through Time.

Creator

Thackray Museum

How to obtain

The packs can be purchased for £9.95 in the museum shop, by post or by calling the education department on 0113 205 6521.

Paper-based and downloads

GCSE Pain, Pus and Blood Surgery Pack: Includes a short video of Hannah Dyson’s Ordeal.

This pack provides an invaluable resource which teachers can use to reinforce issues raised in the GCSE syllabus. It contains a wide variety of original source material and notes from the museum’s galleries, covering the introduction of anesthetics, antiseptics and blood transfusion.

Creator

Thackray Museum

How to obtain

The packs can be purchased for £12.95 in the museum shop, by post or by calling the education department on 0113 205 6521.

Paper-based and downloads

GNVQ Health and Social Care

This pack covers some aspects of the Part One, Foundation, Intermediate and Advanced units for the 2000 specification, including Units 3,4,5 and 9 (Foundation), Units 3 and 10 (Intermediate)and Unit C Part One Health and Social Care and AVCE Health Promotion. Written by practicing teachers, the pack includes guidance notes for tutors, assessment criteria and evidence sheets and worksheets for students.

Creator

Thackray Museum

How to obtain

The packs can be purchased for £20.00 in the museum shop, by post or by calling the education department on 0113 205 6521.

Paper-based and downloads

Indiana Bones and the Temple of Food /Baskerville’s Secret Bone

Follow Indiana on his sometimes dangerous journey following food through the human body. Choose your favourite meal from the menu - even chips with everything! On the secret bone hunt help Baskerville to find his bone store by playing the health and lifestyle game.

Creator

Thackray Museum

How to obtain

The pack can be purchased for £9.95 (plus p&p) in the museum shop, by post or by calling the education department on 0113 205 6521.

Paper-based and downloads

Key Skills Level 2 Application of Numbers

Designed in line with Key Skills guidelines, this pack covers areas such as; obtaining relevant information, selecting appropriate methods to get results, calculating showing methods and presentation of findings

Creator

Thackray Musuem

How to obtain

The packs can be purchased for £4.95 in the museum shop, by post or by calling the education department on 0113 205 6521.

Paper-based and downloads

Key Stage 2 Literacy Pack

A range of support materials with suggestions and examples for follow up work from a visit to the museum.

Creator

Thackray Museum

How to obtain

The pack can be purchased for £4.95 (plus p&p) in the museum shop, by post or by calling the education department on 0113 205 6521.

Paper-based and downloads

Key Stage 2 Maths

This illustrated pack includes worksheets, teachers’ notes and answers for Key Stage 2 maths. Designed for use in conjunction with a visit to the museum, it aims to developmaths skills in an interesting and relevant way.

Creator

Thackray Museum

How to obtain

The pack can be purchased for £4.95 (plus p&p) in the museum shop, by post or by calling the education department on 0113 205 6521.

Paper-based and downloads

Key Stage 3 Maths Bridging Units

Designed in line with the National Numeracy Strategy this pack provides worksheets and activities based around the museum galleries. It includes practical activities which involve gathering information by counting and measuring then presenting it in a variety of graphs and charts. Ideal for summer numeracy schools.

Creator

Thackray Museum

How to obtain

The packs can be purchased for £3 in the museum shop, by post or by calling the education department on 0113 205 6521.

Paper-based and downloads

Life as a Victorian Child Resource Pack

This pack examines the question “what was life like for children living in Victorian Britain?” It includes lesson plans, primary source materials and writing frames. The latest teaching strategies are used to encourage children to participate in exciting learning activities. This pack links directly to unit 11 in the QCA Scheme of Work.

Creator

Thackray Museum

How to obtain

The pack can be purchased for £7.95 (plus p&p) in the museum shop, by post or by calling the education department on 0113 205 6521.

Digital and online resources

Mary Seacole

The life of Mary Seacole and her contribution to medicine and healthcare, looking at why she went to Turkey to help soldiers injured in the Crimean War, and what happened as a result of her work - good interactive about herbal medicines.

Publisher

This resource was produced as part of the MLA-funded My Learning project.

Perhaps the most unusual collection of primary source material in the series. The children can examine Victorian posters advertising everything from the Chinese jugglers through to the appearance of Henry Brown in his “bloomer costume”. The pack also contains Mr. Spark’s description of the Leeds Fair 1865. Finally the children are introduced to Dr Heaton who kept a diary of his holiday to Bridlington: guidebooks, newspaper adverts and trade directories can be used to plan an exciting day out for Mrs. Heaton and the family.N.C Study unit 3A: Victorian Britain E.

Creator

Thackray Museum

How to obtain

The pack can be purchased for £9.95 (plus p&p) in the museum shop, by post or by calling the education department on 0113 205 6521.

Paper-based and downloads

Sherlock Bones’ Voyage of Discovery Activity Pack

Designed for use in conjunction with a visit to the Bodyworks Gallery, this pack contains activity sheets, fact sheets and notes for teachers about everything from “How do I smell?” to explaining the human machine to aliens.

Creator

Thackray Museum

How to obtain

The pack can be purchased for £8.95 (plus p&p) in the museum shop, by post or by calling the education department on 0113 205 6521.

Digital and online resources

Streets Alive CD ROM

Experience the sights and sounds of the slums of Victorian Leeds. Choose a character, discover the risks to their health and meet the people who tried to make them better, in this interactive resource.

Creator

Thackray Museum

How to obtain

This CD Rom can be purchased for £9.95 (plus p&p) in the museum shop, by post or by calling the education department on 0113 205 6521.

Boxes, objects and other kit

The Galleries for Key Stage 1 & 2

The Thackray Museum has been designed to offer a fun, interactive and valuable educational experience for Key stage 1 & 2 pupils. Telling the story of medicine, from the daily grind in the slums of Victorian Britain to the wonders of modern surgery the Thackray Museum’s galleries bring to life the history of health, disease, treatments and cures, medical discoveries, equipment and technology.Transport your class back to the grim reality of life for the poor in Victorian Britain. Walk through the streets of Leeds in 1842 and experience how people really lived and died: the squalor, the sounds, the smells. Choose a character in the street scenes and follow their life and ailments.

Creator

Thackray Museum

How to obtain

A visit to the museum costs just £4.00 per pupil (not including a led session). The museum’s education programme is very popular and so once you have decided you would like to visit us it is essential that you call as soon as possible to make a provisional booking. Once a date has been agreed you will be sent a booking form, which should be completed and returned to the museum’s education department as soon as possible to confirm the booking. A deposit is not required but we ask that payment should be made on the day of your visit by cash or cheque.Telephone the education department on 0113 205 6521 to make your booking.

Face to face resources

The Galleries for Key Stage 3 & 4

The Thackray Museum has been designed to offer an interactive and valuable educational experience for Key stage 3 & 4 pupils. The galleries have been designed to support the “Medicine Through Time” module in GCSE History and a visit is an excellent introduction to the course or a valuable tool as an aid to revision. Telling the story of medicine, from the daily grind in the slums of Victorian Britain to the wonders of modern surgery the Thackray Museum’s galleries bring to life the history of health, disease, treatments and cures, medical discoveries, equipment and technology.A VisitTransport your class back to the grim reality of life for the poor in Victorian Britain. Walk through the st

Creator

Thackray Museum

How to obtain

A visit to the museum cost’s just £4.00 per pupil.The museum’s education programme is very popular and so once you have decided you would like to visit us it is essential that you call as soon as possible to make a provisional booking.Once a date has been agreed you will be sent a booking form which should be completed and returned to the museum’s education department as soon as possible to confirm the booking. A deposit is not required but we ask that payment should be made on the day of your visit by cash or cheque.Telephone the education department on 0113 205 6521 to make your booking.

Paper-based and downloads

Victorian Britain Primary History Resource Pack

Essential for planning your visit to the museum. Includes a range of investigations and activities for children before, during and after their visit. Topics include: public health, medicine in Victorian Britain and activities based on the Leeds Union Workhouse, the building in which the museum is housed.

Creator

Thackray Musuem

How to obtain

The pack can be purchased for £8.95 (plus p&p) in the museum shop, by post or by calling the education department on 0113 205 6521.

Face to face resources

Victorians Alive! Taught session

This is a fully interactive taught sessions for key stage two which includes object investigation and role play. It lasts for approximately 2 hours. Spend your day as a Victorian at the Thackray Museum. Explore time packages of objects relating to six of the characters from the streets of 1842 Leeds and build up a picture of their lives from the artefacts and documents.Discover where you live and work. Find out what happens when you become ill and decide which cure to try. Can you afford your treatment?

Creator

Thackray Museum

Publisher

Thackray Museum

How to obtain

The workshop costs just £4.00 per pupil which includes a visit to the museum. The museum’s education programme is very popular and so once you have decided you would like to visit us it is essential that you call as soon as possible to make a provisional booking. Once a date has been agreed you will be sent a booking form, which should be completed and returned to the museum’s education department as soon as possible to confirm the booking. A deposit is not required but we ask that payment should be made on the day of your visit by cash or cheque. Telephone the education department on 0113 205 6521 to make your booking

Website

E-mail

All enquiries

Telephone

All Enquiries

0113 244 4343

All information is drawn from or provided by the venues themselves and every effort is made to ensure it is correct. Please remember to double check opening hours with the venue concerned before making a special visit.